Breadcrumb PRO by Groupon provides an iPad point-of-sale application for restaurants, cafes, bars, and clubs. There are no contracts or monthly fees and scheduling a demo can be done easily on the Breadcrumb website. With over 200 features and customization options, Breadcrumb PRO is a powerful restaurant POS with a 30-day money back guarantee.

First impressions

Breadcrumb PRO restaurant POS provides a simple, intuitive interface. It was very easy for me to find my way around the iPad application from the start. The administrator Home screen contains the necessary areas such as Time-sheets, Check Out Reports, Reports, Menu Setup, and more. The employee Home screen is very simple with options for Clock-Out, Time-sheets, and a Check Out Report.

The left-hand navigation contains Home, Tables, Checks, Quick Serve, and a Switch User option. The right side of the screen contains any notes created and is conveniently scrollable. This is a great feature for drawing attention to specials, promotions, or other important items when employees log in.

The interface may seem a little bland at first glance because there are no images or brightly-colored sections. However, the system makes up for that in providing an easy-to-use POS for both administrators and employees.

Pricing & Availability

Breadcrumb HQ is available from any common Web browser. The iPad app can be downloaded from the App Store to iPads running iOS 5.1 or later.

There are 4 pricing plan options available:

Solo for $99/mo. includes use on 1 iPad

Café for $199/mo. includes use on up to 2 iPads

Mid-Size for $299/mo. includes on up to 5 iPads

Flagship for $399/mo. includes use on up to 10 iPads

What it does well

Breadcrumb PRO’s Tables section contains a useful snapshot of open tables within zones and how many patrons are currently seated. Upon clicking the Zone, the Floor Plan appears with open tables in green and occupied tables in red. Floor plans can be edited from this area. Objects such as tables or obstacles can be placed with four different shape options and a slider to increase or decrease the object’s size. Once the object is configured it can be easily moved to the desired location.

Selecting one of the tables brings up the Number of Guests screen numbered 1 to 10. After choosing a number, the check for the table opens and is ready for the order. Category tabs along the right are displayed in different colors per the menu chosen in setup. Once a category is chosen a list appears with the menu items and prices. Users simply select the item on the right and it is added to the check on the left. Checks have a Note option and Properties can be adjusted such as print or email receipt, transfer to another employee, number of guests, time seated, and much more. Applying a payment to the check is as easy as clicking the Payments button. Fast Cash, Cash, Credit Cards, and other payment options are displayed with additional options such as Tip Adjust and Comp.

The Checks section displays a list of checks and can be filtered by Open, Closed, All, Mine (for that employee) or All (for all employees). Table, recent category, employee, time, and dollar amount are shown which provides a great view of the day’s checks. New checks can also be created here as well as phone orders.

The Quick Serve button can be clicked to open a check rather than selecting a table within a zone. This interface is similar to the regular check area above, except that the category tabs are listed along the top instead of on the right. There is also a Fast Cash button and a Done button which allows for quick, exact payments to be made or the check to be saved and a new one opened.

Breadcrumb PRO provides a really nice Settings area. Once clicked from the Home screen, users are taken to an administrator settings dashboard. This is where Tables, Zones, Printers, Devices, Tax, and other general settings are configured. The setup of all items is easy to understand and use. Navigation remains on the left side of the screen and changes in color help the administrator to know they are in a different location. There are many settings options available; however, there are a few that stick out.

Delivery Customers: in this section an import or export in .csv file format of delivery customers is handy. Upon exporting, the sheet shows name, contact information, and a notes section. This could be a very useful marketing tool for contacting customers. For example, this could be used to provide coupons or announce promotions to customers via email or phone.

Void Comp Reasons: this area displays all reasons for discounts or check voids. This allows the user to select one when discounting a check. The list shows how many times that reason has been chosen. This could be really helpful for solving possible issues within the establishment.

Day Parts: this feature allows for dividing parts of the day (i.e. breakfast, lunch, and dinner) with start and end times.

Several basic reports are available including sales, payments, revenue, voids, and comps. Reports can be filtered and provide more than enough information for the administrator. Some reports offer charts which make obtaining data at a glance a breeze.

Support options are available via the website. Breadcrumb offers a knowledge base, email address, and phone number for assistance. Video tutorials and training webinars are also available, which are terrific learning tools. Although there does not appear to be a Help section in the iPad app, I did not come across anything within the application that required help.

What we would like to see in future updates

After adding items to a check, it would be nice to simply save it. Currently the only option to save is called Save & New. If the user does not want to start a new check then they should be able to just save the current one.

When setting up a new item, there is an option to add a side to it. For example, a cheeseburger could come with an order of fries. Unfortunately, when setting up the side dish, the screen only has a drop-down list. So, the administrator has to scroll through the entire list to find the desired side item. This is a little cumbersome. It would be great to see either a filter or keyword search on this screen to expedite the action of adding the side.

There are many reports available for administrators to view; however, I did not see an option to download/export and thus save the reports from the iPad. There is a download option on the website, so it would be beneficial to have that option on the iPad as well.

The Verdict

Breadcrumb PRO may not have the flashiest interface, but it does have an easy-to-use one. Whether an administrator or employee, the navigation is clear, the process of taking an order and applying payment is easy, and the overall setup provides a plethora of options. This iPad POS is worth checking out if you are looking to update your point of sale system.

Interview with founder of Breadcrumb, Seth Harris:

Q. What moved you to pursue and build Breadcrumb? What does it do differently than other products?

Hospitality is in my blood—I’ve done every job you can imagine in a restaurant or bar, from busboy to bartender to manager, GM, Director of Operations and Managing Partner. No matter my role or the business type, one consistent element of every venue I’ve worked at is a painfully bad POS. I never understood why they cost so much, I never understood why they looked so old and clunky, I never understood why they were so difficult to program and hard to use, and I never understood why there was so much data about my business and customers trapped in a system to which I couldn’t get. Breadcrumb is POS reimagined for the modern world—a fully featured hospitality point of sale built from scratch to run on iPad and delivered in a subscription model that obliterates legacy POS cost. We offer free updates forever and 24/7 support is included in every plan.

Q. What has been the most challenging experience in building Breadcrumb?

Two things: (1) learning that I cannot be in control of everything and responsible for everything if I expected Breadcrumb to continue to deliver an outstanding product with outstanding support; and (2) finding and recruiting great people to join our team so that I could follow what I learned in the first point.

Q. What has been a major influence for the design behind Breadcrumb?

Every “employee” is a consumer in private life and most consumers have seen an enormous evolution in the simplicity of design in the software and tools they use outside of work. It’s only natural for these consumers to expect the same level of simplicity in their work applications. That belief was the single biggest influence in the design of Breadcrumb—point of sale doesn’t need to be extremely complex and intimidating. It can be pretty and still be a kick-ass product that does everything a major Manhattan restaurant needs to operate at peak efficiency

Q. Who is this app for?

Breadcrumb is built for local restaurants, bars, nightclubs and cafes.

Q. Who would be a better spokesperson for Breadcrumb: Superman, Batman, or Spiderman and why?

Spiderman. As a kid, I had the wall at the head of my bed painted with a Spiderman mural. He’s watched over me ever since.

Q. What is in store for the future for Breadcrumb?

We’re going to keep delivering the best point of sale experience our customers have ever had. Local commerce is evolving—the way consumers discover where they’re going to go, how they choose what they’re going to purchase, how they pay for that purchase and the interaction between the merchant and consumer post-transaction are all undergoing fundamental transformations. We’re excited to be an enabler of that revolution and to perfect the guest experience at hospitality venues around the world.